Could CBD Help Your Child Perform Better In School?

Published on January 06, 2018

School is back in session, and maybe your kid still hasn’t gotten out of “Winter Break Mode.” Or perhaps your child has always been struggling, and you can’t figure out how to help. There are plenty of reasons kids don’t do well in school, do you remember how challenging it used to be? Many parents resort to pharmaceuticals to fix the situation, but sometimes the side effects turn their kids into people they don’t recognize. CBD has also shown that it can work just as well as other medications given to children with less risk to their health. Could CBD help your child perform better in school?

What Is CBD?

Cannabidiol (CBD) is a chemical that we find in marijuana. It’s not the same as the weed you see on TV, though. CBD doesn’t get you high like THC does, making it a more attractive alternative medicine for children.

CBD interacts with our body’s endocannabinoid system. This system is in charge of the body’s homeostasis, making sure that everything runs as usual. The endocannabinoid system is in charge of your immune system fighting pathogens, your metabolism making food into energy, and even regulates your mood. When it is out of whack, CBD can help control the system by inhibiting or encouraging specific activities in the brain.

The Endocannabinoid System

Let’s dig a little deeper into what the Endocannabinoid System is so that you can fully understand how CBD can do so much. It almost seems impossible that something that helps bug bites become less itchy also can help treat symptoms of depression.

Cannabinoid Receptors

Did you know that you have receptors in your brain that can bind to cannabinoids found in marijuana plants? That is because of their similarities to endocannabinoids which are made in the brain organically. Cannabinoid receptors are found all over the body like in your skin, your organs, and your brains. The CB1 receptors are more densely populated in the brain, and researchers have found that it’s primary function is to run and regulate the neurological system. CB2 receptors are spread out more evenly through the body, and they are in charge of the immune functions.

Endocannabinoids

Endocannabinoids are chemicals that your brain makes organically and are incredibly similar to cannabinoids found in marijuana. Anandamide, the endocannabinoids that interact mostly with CB1 receptors, is most similar to the chemical THC. Like a duplicated key, THC can fit perfectly into the CB1 receptors, giving you the munchies, making you feel a little sleepy, giving you the feeling of euphoria, and making you less sensitive to pain. These effects are very similar to what anandamide makes you feel naturally, just boosted to the extreme.

Metabolic Enzymes

If chemicals stayed in your brain forever, you would go insane and then start to lose function. This is why we have the cleanup crew that goes around deteriorating the organic material that is no longer in use. These metabolic enzymes are also where endocannabinoids come from, without them you would have nothing to make them. When cells are down in the dumps damaged by trauma, metabolic enzymes are there to repair damaged cells and promote healthy life cycles.

CBD For Your Children

Before you buy a bottle of CBD and start giving it to your child, you need to know a little bit more. Why is your child doing poorly in school? This is when you have to put your super mom or super dad cap on and really analyze the situation. If they have anxiety issues, they are going to take a different dose than if they were suffering from depression. There are also things that CBD can’t help treat, like wanting to spend more time with their parents. So the first question you have to ask yourself is, why is my child having trouble in school?

Depression

If your child is depressed, it will make it a lot harder for them to gain motivation to do well. When you are in a state of depression, nothing matters. Even adults can barely handle the crushing weight, let alone a child. Depression can come at any age, from just plain old brain chemistry being developed differently or from something happening in their environment. CBD can help with depression through treatment by regulating the brain chemistry. It naturally elevates the mood by raising the levels of anandamide, giving your child a chance to have that natural motivation to do well and succeed.

Symptoms Of Depression

Not being able to find enjoyment in activities they once loved

General discontent with everything

Trouble sleeping

Anxiety

Lack of appetite or overeating

Mood Swings or sadness

Fatigue

Lack of concentration

Thoughts of suicide (It is important to note that even children can have thoughts of suicide and it is essential to address this calmly, so they aren’t afraid to talk about it.)

Anxiety

Children can get anxiety at a young age, and it might not seem apparent because they are already balls of energy and they all express it differently. But anxiety is a lot different than an excited kid, and it likes to steal concentration. When a child has running thoughts, it is difficult for them to focus on an activity in school. Their racing thoughts might also bring up social anxiety, which will make going to school extremely difficult. Children are often victims of disorders like PTSD, OCD, General Anxiety Disorder, and common coexisting disorders like ADHD. Research suggests that CBD can help with all of these illnesses.

CBD helps calm the mind down through a process called retrograde signaling. This means that the endocannabinoids travel backward to mediate brain activity. If a neuron is overexcited, the endocannabinoids will tell it to calm down. If the neuron isn’t sending enough chemicals, the endocannabinoids will command it to get excited.

Symptoms Of Anxiety Disorders

Lack of concentration

Flashbacks (PTSD)

Increased heart rate

Irritability

Mood swings

Depression

Fatigue

Unwanted thoughts

Constant fear or worry

More Than Medicine

If you have ever been to the doctor for anything, it is uncommon that they will just give you medicine and send you on your way without any other instructions. If you have a cold, they will advise lots of fluids and eating crackers. If you have an injury, they will recommend physical therapy. Medicine has never been the cure-all, it is a mixture of things that help us reach the pinnacle of health. This is also the case when it comes to mental health.

CBD can help make the symptoms less severe. However, it doesn’t make the problems go away. Even though it will make focusing easier, your children still need to know what to do with that new found ability. Doctors highly suggest therapy when working on your mental health. Otherwise, you would be bound to medicine forever. You can treat many mental health disorders, while others are unfortunately a way of life. Even if the latter is the case, therapy will make living with the disorder a lot more manageable when combined with medication like cannabis oil.

Other Ways To Help Your Child In School

There are also things that could be going on with your child that you can help with on top of helping their moods regulate. Your child might learn differently, they may have a difficult time in the classroom setting, or they could just be bored because they are so beyond the content of the curriculum. Pinpointing what precisely the issue is can give you the knowledge to change the situation into something more beneficial for everyone.

Lack Of Confidence

Many children lack the confidence to do well in school. Why try hard if they are just going to fail? This can keep them from engaging in dialogue that gets their brain thinking, desensitizing themselves to the atmosphere of the classroom. This little doubt in the back of their mind eventually takes over, and your child’s grades can begin to plummet.

Being encouraging is extremely important, reminding them that some people just have to work harder at things than others. A brilliant scientist who has discovered how to move space and time may have the grammar of a seven-year-old. There is a little genius in all of us, and you can help bring that out of your child, so they can have the confidence to excel.

They Don’t Know How To Study

Some kids can read a book and retain all of the information. Then there are the students who need to be engaged with, play games, or be hands-on to learn the lessons. Teaching your child how to study can be the difference between failing and acing because it sets them up for a successful thought process in the future. If they learn from writing things down, having them take more notes or outlining material might work better than going over the material out loud. If your child is a musician, making songs might be the best route to remember the table of elements or their time's tables.

Social Problems

If your child acts out in class, freezes up when the teacher calls on them, or avoids class altogether, they might just be uncomfortable learning in the classroom setting. Unless you have the resources to homeschool your child, there is no getting around going to class. However, tutors are a great aid in this situation. They use your child’s learning style to help them with their lessons, with one on one interaction that is without distractions like other students. This can give them the confidence to excel in class having learned the material in a setting more comfortable to them.

A tutor is also excellent for when your child is bored in school because they pick up on lessons so quickly. Giving them harder material to master will take the edge off of the boring classes, and it will help them prove to themselves that they truly are good enough to succeed.

If your child is struggling in school, it is usually a cry for help. You can use CBD oil and a change in lifestyle to help your child perform better in school. Always talk to a doctor before giving medication to your child, especially if they are already taking medication. After you’ve had an honest discussion with your doctor, stop by our shop to see if CBD oil is what could be that extra boost to getting your child's life on track.